


We Grow Up Then We Fall Asleep

by eternalscout



Series: Come Now Children [1]
Category: Pacific Rim (2013)
Genre: De-Aged, Fluff, Gen, babysitter!Hermann, kid!Newt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-25
Updated: 2013-09-25
Packaged: 2017-12-27 13:58:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/979742
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eternalscout/pseuds/eternalscout
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Thanks to the Kaiju, Hermann has to take care of an eight-year-old Newt. As if he didn't have enough to worry about already.</p>
            </blockquote>





	We Grow Up Then We Fall Asleep

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was written for the [following prompt](http://pacificrimkink.livejournal.com/2747.html?thread=3764923#t3764923) on the Pacific Rim Kink Meme on LiveJournal.
> 
> The title is from Star Spangle Bang by Crunk Witch.

Hermann couldn't comprehend what he was seeing. He had nearly eight years of battling monsters from another world under his belt, and yet this brought him up short.

There was a half-dressed child in the lab. This was the Los Angeles Shatterdome. Even if the brat had made it out of the city proper and located the building, he shouldn't have been able to get past the first round of security, let alone make it to the labs near the heart of the base. 

The boy was surprisingly quiet, staring at some specimen Newton had left unattended. He wore a baggy white button up and a loose black tie, both of which threatened to reach the scrawny knees poking out beneath them. The boy had rolled the sleeves up to his elbows and was both pantsless and barefoot. His brown hair was cut short and left to its own devices, standing straight up on his head aside from a rogue cowlick near the back. As Hermann watched, he shoved his oversized glasses further up the bridge of his nose and stood on tiptoe, extending finger to prod the specimen.

"Stop! Stop at once!" Hermann bellowed, moving as quickly as he could in the boy's direction. Whether or not the child's parents were irresponsible enough to have let it so far out of their sight, he would not be responsible for it potentially losing a finger to whatever was on the table.

The boy jerked his hand back and his head swiveled in Hermann's direction, nearly dislodging his glasses in the process. "I wasn't gonna touch it!"

"The devil you weren't!" Hermann snapped. The thing on the table _moved_ and Hermann shouted, grabbing the boy by the back of the shirt and hauling him away as something burst, showering the area immediately around the metal table in Kaiju bits.

"Newton!"

The boy's head snapped up, eyes going wide. "I didn't do it!"

"Newton!" Hermann repeated, glowering as he surveyed the otherwise empty lab.

"I didn't!" the boy insisted. "I didn't even touch it!"

Hermann ignored him, though he maintained his hold. The boy stumbled as he was pulled backward behind him. "Really, Newton," Hermann continued, voice rising along with his blood pressure. "It isn't enough for you to leave your specimens unattended! You make a mess when you are not even present! It's a talent only you could master!"

"I just saw it! It wasn't me!" the boy protested.

Once they were both a safe distance away, Hermann turned to him, redirecting his anger toward the child since Newton couldn't bother to show himself. "What are you doing here, boy?"

"I dunno! I just woke up and there that thing was and I... What was that?"

"That, boy, was a piece of a Kaiju. And as it may not be apparent due to my colleague's irresponsibility, it is very dangerous and not to be left lying around or toyed with!"

"What's a Kaiju?"

Hermann offered him a withering look. "Name, boy."

The boy scowled back at him. "You didn't answer my question!"

"I am the one asking the questions. You are the one giving answers. Name. Now."

The boy stuck out his lower lip and crossed his arms, scowling up at him. "Newt."

"Newt?" he echoed. "Do you have a last name, Newt?"

"Geiszler."

Hermann's eyes narrowed. "Hysterical. I suppose Dr. Geiszler put you up to this?"

"Who?" he prompted, brows furrowing.

Hermann took a second look at him. "The man whose clothes you're apparently wearing. He should know I will never, under any circumstances, find his messes humorous. And the fact that he left you here alone with that specimen further reveals just how irresponsible he is. We are going to speak directly with the Marshal."

"The Marshal?"

Hermann took a fistful of his shirt and started toward the door.

"I'm cold," the boy protested, trudging along beside him.

"You're half dressed and in a room designed to preserve scientific specimens. Perhaps you should have thought the matter through before you agreed to participate in Dr. Geiszler's practical joke."

"My feet are gonna fall off! They're turning blue!"

"They most assuredly are not."

The boy's arms were suddenly wrapped around his waist and Hermann came to an abrupt halt.

"Release me immediately, boy."

"Gimme some socks."

"I'm sure the two of you get along quite well," Hermann snapped, eyes narrowing. As usual, he was left cleaning up Newton's messes. "Release me and I will find you something warmer to wear."

The boy complied and Hermann tightened his grip on his shirt lest the little cretin try to make a run for it. Thankfully his quarters weren't far from the lab. He led the boy inside and went to the trunk at the foot of his bed. He and Newton were still settling into their new accommodations, having relocated according to the needs of the program.

Something fell behind him and Hermann turned, scowling. The books he'd propped up on his desk were on their sides and the boy stared back at him, eyebrows reaching his hairline.

"I didn't do it!"

"Come here. Now."

He hung his head as he obeyed, stopping at Hermann's side and hazarding a look up at him. Hermann held out a pair of thick socks. The boy took them, sliding them on. They managed to stay put, but only because they nearly reached his thighs. He wiggled his toes appreciatively.

"Do I want to know what became of what you were wearing when you arrived?"

"I dunno! Was that your lab? It was really cool."

Hermann blinked down at him. That was perhaps the first time he'd heard it described in such a way by anyone other than Newton. "You like science?"

"Duh! I love it! I'm gonna be a scientist. I'm gonna get all the doctorates in the world, too!"

"Are you related to Dr. Geiszler?"

"Who? Uh. Maybe? That's my last name."

"I'm sure it is," he drawled, leading him back toward the door after taking hold of his shirt once more.

"How come you have a cane? Is it because you're old?"

Hermann snorted, ignoring the odd looks they received from the group of soldiers they passed in the hallway. He stopped by Newton's room, banging loudly on the door. Naturally, he didn't answer.

"Dr. Gottlieb!"

He turned, spotting Mako down the hall. She jogged up to the two of them. The boy poked his head out from behind Hermann and she jerked to a halt.

"Miss Mori. Perhaps you can direct me to the Marshal. It seems Dr. Geiszler has decided to play a prank on me using a child he borrowed from who knows where."

She ignored him, instead kneeling down to look the boy in the face. "...Newt?"

The boy beamed. "Hi!"

She straightened, brows furrowed tightly together. "Dr. Geiszler placed a call to medical roughly twenty minutes ago."

"To medical?" Hermann echoed, frowning. "Why?"

"He said he was feeling faint. When they could not find him, they reviewed the tapes and..."

"And?" he prompted, concern building at her hesitance.

She gestured to the boy.

A bark of laughter escaped Hermann. "Really, Miss Mori. You are one of the last people I would expect to be involved in Dr. Geiszler's joke."

"It is not a joke."

"I am supposed to believe this boy is Newton? I am not nearly as gullible as you all seem to have hoped."

"This is not a joke," she repeated, frowning now. "This is a serious matter, Dr. Gottlieb. There has been a similar incident. Newton needs to be taken to medical immediately."

"Or what?"

"The other scientist was de-aged to a similar degree. As she had not been inoculated against the Kaiju blue at that stage in her life, she quickly succumbed. He needs to be taken to medical."

Hermann wanted to protest, to demand she cease with what was already a tired attempt at humor, and yet something about the way she stared back at him, gaze intense, swept his anger from him. She knelt, lifting the boy easily despite being less than two feet taller than him. Hermann's hand fell from the boy's shirt and she jogged back in the direction of medical. Against Hermann's better judgment, he moved quickly after her, ignoring the resulting twinge in his leg.

By the time he reached medical, he could already see a change in the boy. His skin looked almost ashen and he seemed oddly subdued. Hermann had been lucky enough not to see the effects of Kaiju blue in person, but he recognized the symptoms. It was impossible. Everyone on the West Coast of the United States should have been inoculated, not that the boy seemed to care. Medical personnel swarmed the bed the boy laid on. Hermann tried to step back, but Mako caught his arm, pulling him closer.

"He wants you," she said, leading him to the only spot that was unoccupied. She took Hermann's arm, lifting it and offering his hand to the boy. The boy promptly wrapped his fingers around it, gripping tightly.

It was impossible, and yet here the boy was, quietly accepting the shots he was administered. The only sign of his discomfort was that his fingers tightened with each press of a needle.

"He will be all right," Mako offered at Hermann's side. She gave his shoulder a squeeze and stepped back, slipping out of the curtained area.

The process didn't take long, perhaps only twenty minutes, including the doctors' monitoring once the series of shots had been completed. The boy's color was already returning and he'd begun to fidget on the bed, though he had yet to release Hermann's hand. They were left alone behind the curtain and the boy...Newt offered Hermann a small smile.

"Don't look so worried. I'm fine."

"I wasn't worried," he retorted, frowning.

Heavy footsteps sounded and the curtain drew back as Marshal Pentecost and Mako stepped inside the small area. Pentecost's expression was as unreadable as it always was, but Mako offered Hermann a nod. Pentecost took the two of them in, frown mirroring Hermann's own.

"Miss Mori informed me that she told you of the other incident, Dr. Gottlieb."

"How have I not heard of this before?" Hermann demanded.

"The prior incident occurred less than twelve hours ago. The scientist, Dr. Amadika Asabi, was studying the same specimen."

"And yet Newton was permitted to continue his work with it?"

"We only just received word. The circumstances of her death warranted investigation."

"What were they able to determine?"

Pentecost glanced back to Newton. The boy stared up at him, seemingly mesmerized. "You're so tall," he offered, stilling. "I'm gonna be that tall one day!"

"Her body is being monitored," Pentecost continued. "To determine whether or not the effects may reverse. Meanwhile, a warning has been issued. Your lab has been quarantined until further notice. The remaining pieces of the Kaiju Tentalus are being recollected and the lab will be sterilized."

Hermann started to protest but was silenced with a look.

"If necessary, photographs will be taken of your work, Dr. Gottlieb. You will not be permitted to reenter it. In fact, you will be required to check in periodically to ensure you will not similarly affected by the specimen."

"And until then?" Hermann demanded. "If I cannot return to the lab, how am I to continue my work?"

"We will see what materials we can locate for you. Until then, you will be responsible for keeping an eye on Newton."

"With all due respect, Marshal, I am egregiously overqualified to be the boy's babysitter!"

"And yet he seems drawn to you in particular," he said, gesturing to their joined hands.

Hermann plucked his free immediately. "Marshal, you cannot be serious!"

"I trust you will not disappoint me, Dr. Gottlieb."

Hermann's mouth snapped shut and he managed a curt nod. "Yes, sir."

"The doctor has informed me that Newton will be released momentarily."

"But shouldn't he be under further observation?"

"They've already done what little they could. There is nothing more they can do for him until they've studied the samples they've taken."

"Yes, sir."

"Miss Mori will be the one responsible for checking in with you. Please answer your phone and door when she does. I would not be overly concerned, but I would prefer to err on the side of caution. I have sent someone out to gather any necessary items for Newton. They should be dropping them off in your room within the hour."

"Yes, sir."

Pentecost nodded to him before turning and stepping out. Mako bowed and did the same.

The spell Pentecost seemed to have had over Newton was lifted and the boy resumed his squirming. "I'm bored."

As if on cue, Hermann was handed Newton’s release papers by one of the nurses and he looked back to Newt. "Can you walk?"

Newt offered him a look indicating just how unimpressed he was with the question. He scrambled out of the bed and darted in the direction of the door.

"Newton!"

"Whaaaat?"

For a child that had been perilously close to death's door less than an hour earlier, he seemed as if he had no intentions of slowing down now that he was up and running again. Hermann, in contrast, felt as if he could use a cup of strong tea and perhaps even a long nap.

"You are to listen to me until we have this matter sorted," Hermann said, reaching him.

"Duh. I heard the Marshal."

"Stop using that word."

Newton grinned back at him. "What word?" he innocently queried before he darted out into the hall.

"Newton!"

Newt spun, frowning back at him. "Would you just hurry..." He trailed off, eyes dropping to Hermann's cane. "Oh."

"Oh? What is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing. Where are we going? Are we going back to your lab?"

"And here I thought you said you heard the Marshal."

Newt rolled his eyes. "I'm hungry!"

Hermann took a deep breath, forcing back his mounting temper. It seemed that at any age, Newton was capable of pressing his buttons with expert precision.

“Very well. We will go to the mess hall and then we will return to my quarters and you will do as I say.”

Newt offered an exaggerated salute. He let Hermann set the pace this time. Though he walked sedately at his side, his head swung around incessantly. Hermann was convinced it might fall off if he kept it up. He reached out, resting his hand on Newt’s mop of dark hair. Newt blinked, staring up at him over his glasses, but he kept his eyes forward. Hermann gave a small sigh of relief.

As they stepped through the doors to the mess, Hermann felt as if every eye in the room was on them. Newt perked up at the attention, grinning and waving, but Hermann ignored the crowd and shifted his hand to the boy’s back, steering him toward the line. Hermann grabbed a tray for each of them and Newt snatched his, setting it on the metal counter running along their side of the buffet. He strained to reach the serving spoon for the mashed potatoes. Hermann got it first, dishing out an appropriate serving for the both of them. Newt pursed his lips but didn’t protest.

“Ooh, I want the meatloaf. And the chicken. And three rolls!”

“No one knows what is in the meatloaf,” Hermann said, selecting chicken and giving Newt a single roll.

“I said three!”

“I heard you,” Hermann answered, adding corn and spinach to their plates.

“Ew! I don’t want any of that!” Newt paused, however, when he spotted the cookies at the end of the buffet. “Oooh!”

“You may have one. If you finish your vegetables.”

“I want three!”

“One.”

“Three!”

“One,” Hermann repeated, scowling now.

“THREE!”

Hermann grabbed two for him and stuck them on the plate. Newt grinned up at him and led the way to the table, oblivious to the glare Hermann leveled at his back.

Hermann poured them both a glass of water from the pitcher at the center of the table. Newt wrinkled his nose as he sipped at it.

“I want a soda.”

“You won’t find one here. And I’ll be damned before anyone provides you with caffeine.”

Newt huffed and took an enormous bite out of his cookie. “How come you didn’t get one?”

“Get one what?”

He waved what remained at Hermann and Hermann was forced to brush, likely saliva-coated, crumbs from his sweater.

“I do not care for sweets. And if you do that again, I’ll take away the second.”

“You don’t ever have any fun, do you?”

Hermann took a bite of his spinach in answer.

It took some wheedling and overt threats to get Newton to finish what was on his plate. By then, Hermann was thoroughly convinced his decision to never have children was perhaps the smartest he’d ever made. Newt, thankfully, stuck by his side as they left the mess.

“Are we going back to your room?”

“We are.”

Newt squinted up at him through glasses that were doubtlessly far too strong. “Is there anything fun in your room?”

“Such as?”

“A TV? A computer? I didn’t see any.”

“I have a laptop.”

“Cool!”

Hermann unlocked his door on reaching it and Newt slipped inside as he turned on the light. A stack of children’s clothes rested on the bed along with a set of Jaeger and Kaiju action figures. Newt made a beeline for them, snatching them up.

“Whoa! These are awesome! I’ve never seen robots like this! Ooh, what are these monster things? They look like Godzilla!”

“The robots are replicas of the Jaegers we use to fight the Kaiju. The ‘monster things,’ as you call them.”

Newt’s eyes threatened to grow wider than the frames of his glasses. “What? What?! Are you serious?!”

“Am I ever not?”

A burst of laughter escaped him. “Whoa! You made a joke!”

Hermann shook his head and stepped closer, inspecting the clothes. They looked to be about the right size for Newt. Newt fumbled with the packaging of the toys as Hermann picked up the topmost shirt, unfolding it. It was a small, white button up. He noted a pair of black jeans as well and snorted softly.

“Newton.”

Newt paused from where he was trying to pry the plastic open with his teeth. “Hmm?”

“Now that you have proper attire, we are going to go and wash. Then we shall return here and retire for the evening.”

Newt frowned, considering the words carefully. “Open this,” he said, holding the mutilated package out to him.

“Open this, what?”

He looked heavenward. “Please.”

“After we return. You won’t be taking them to the showers with us.” Perhaps the drool on it would have dry by then.

Newt sighed, tossing the toys back onto the bed. Hermann collected a pair of pajamas for both of them along with his toiletry kit. Cane in hand, he led the way out of the room and to the showers at the end of the hall.

These were better than what he was accustomed to. While the showers were still communal, people generally stuck to the ones closest to their quarters. As rooming was assigned based on job function, the scientists had their own showers.

It was largely empty when they entered and Hermann led Newton to one of the benches just outside the shower room. He set their things down and began to strip. Newt watched him a moment before doing the same, kicking off his oversized socks and tugging off his oversized shirt. He left it in a heap on the bench and set his glasses down on top of it. In contrast, Hermann neatly folded his clothes, setting them carefully down so they would not be tempted to tumble to the floor.

“What about your cane?” Newt piped up beside him. 

Hermann laid it across the bench. “I will be fine.” 

He’d been offered a stool in lieu of a shower better suited to his needs. It was not something he had deigned to use. He knew there would come a day he would likely no longer have a choice, but until then he kept his showers short and used the wall when absolutely necessary.

That didn’t stop Newt from moving to his bad side and taking Hermann’s hand, resting it on his shoulder. The boy’s eyes lingered on the heavy scarring of Hermann’s thigh, but he didn’t ask questions, wordlessly accepting the weight Hermann transferred to him.

“Thank you, Newt,” Hermann offered, voice soft. It wasn’t the first time Newt had helped him like this, though he was surprised to find him so eager to as a child.

Newt flashed him a grin. “I can’t see anything anyway. It helps me out too.”

Hermann steered him toward the unoccupied portion of the row of showers and turned on the water, letting it soak them through. He released Newt so they could both wash, grateful Newt was old enough to manage on his own. They rinsed and, back at the bench, Hermann ensured they were both fully dry before they slipped into their pajamas.

His own were gray and white flannel. Newt’s were decorated with more Jaegers. The boy marveled at the print as they walked back to Hermann’s room. Once inside, Hermann put their clothes into the hamper and opened Newt’s toys for him. He took a seat on the bed while Newt took his desk chair. Hermann picked up one of the fallen books from his desk and thumbed through it, doing his best to ignore the sound effects Newt made as his Jaegers succumbed to the attacking Kaiju.

Hermann hadn’t realized he was drifting off until his phone rang, startling him back awake. He snatched it from where it rested on the wall beside his bed.

“Dr. Gottlieb?”

“Miss Mori.”

“How is Newton?”

Hermann glanced to the boy, belatedly realizing Newton had abandoned his action figures in favor of Hermann’s laptop.

“Newton! That is not a toy!”

Newt’s head snapped up and he flushed. “I know! I’m being careful!”

“Ah,” Mako offered over the line. “Have a nice evening, Dr. Gottlieb.”

Hermann set the phone back in its cradle, glancing to the small alarm clock by his bed. It was nearly midnight.

“Newton, it’s time for bed.”

Newt looked up at him, wrinkling his nose. “No way!”

“I am not asking.”

“I am not tired,” Newt retorted, mimicking his tone.

Hermann pinched the bridge of his nose, internally debating how much of a battle he wanted to have so late at night. Newton had to sleep at some point. He hoped.

“You may bring the laptop, but you will get into bed.”

Newt didn’t protest, instead carefully climbing from the chair and into the bed. He settled down beside Hermann, the computer looking comically large where it rested in his lap.

Hermann glanced at the screen, frowning at the yellow…thing staring back at him.

“What in the world is that?”

Newt looked up at him, eyebrows drifting up. “Are you talking about Pikachu?” he asked, pointing to the screen.

“Never mind, I don’t want to know.”

Newt gaped. “That’s Pikachu! How do you not know who Pikachu is? You know what Pokemon are, don’t you?”

Hermann was convinced he was about to know more about them than he had ever wanted if he didn’t play his cards right.

“Ah, yes. How silly of me. Pokemon, of course.”

Newt relaxed beside him, hitting play on the video. Thankfully the dialogue was in Japanese, which meant Hermann had an easier time drowning it out as Newt relentlessly scanned the subtitles.

Pounding on the door woke Hermann this time. His eyes snapped open and he winced when he realized his overhead light was still on.

“Dr. Gottlieb?” Mako called through the door.

A glance to the clock made him grimace. “It is four o’clock in the morning, Miss Mori.”

“That is something you can discuss with the Marshal,” she answered. “You did not answer your phone.”

He groaned as he shifted, sitting up the rest of the way, though his neck protested after hours of being twisted in the wrong direction. He rubbed at it, frowning when he realized Newt was no longer in bed.

“Newton?”

The boy didn’t answer. Hermann’s frown deepened and he took his cane, using it to leverage himself out of the bed. 

“Newton? Where are you?”

His quarters were small enough that a cursory glance around it was all Hermann needed to realize the boy had gone missing. Panic swelled in his chest and he quickly opened the door, leaning out and spotting Mako’s retreating back.

“Miss Mori!”

She stopped and turned. “Yes?”

“Newton is missing!”

To her credit, she didn’t look overly surprised. Hermann supposed, knowing Newton, he shouldn’t have been either, and yet he had hoped the boy would have respected him enough (though he would have settled for feared) to stay put.

“Did you check under the bed?” she prompted.

He shook his head. “No, I cannot—“

She brushed past him, kneeling down beside it and shaking her head. “We will split up. We will cover more ground that way.”

She was off at a jog before he could thank her. She went right, so Hermann went left. She would cover the mess and other common areas while he focused on the labs and work areas. He was convinced she would find Newton first since he was far more likely to have wandered somewhere “fun.” Not that it stopped him from continuing the search.

Hermann checked the labs first, assuming incorrectly that Newt might have retraced their steps. His last stop was the hangar, though he was tempted to admit defeat and go and see whether or not Mako had found the boy. There were a few crews still milling around, working the graveyard shift in the event a Kaiju came through the breach. They’d gotten better at pinpointing when an event was likely to occur, usually within a few weeks, but had a long way to go when it came to discerning down to the location. It was something Hermann had been working on for nearly two years now.

Hermann started toward the LOCCENT, hoping for a bird’s eye view. He was just passing Striker Eureka when someone caught his sleeve. He frowned and turned only to be greeted by the top of Newton’s head.

“Do you see that?” Newt prompted, pointing up at it. “Isn’t it the coolest thing you’ve ever seen in your whole life?!”

“I have been searching for you for the past hour,” Hermann retorted, scowling down at him. “For all I knew, you could have been dead in a storage closet somewhere!”

Newt seemed unperturbed, instead tugging him closer. “Can we go inside of it?”

“Absolutely not. We are going back to the room and you are going to go to bed.”

“So those are what fight the monsters?” Newt dug one of his figurines from the pocket of his pajama pants, holding it up. It was a perfect match. “The Australian guy said they beat one called Spinejackal. He said I can maybe watch them practice tomorrow!”

“Perhaps. If you learn to behave by then.”

Newt wrinkled his nose at him only for his eyes to widen a moment later. “He said you helped develop the code for the first Jaegers. Is that true?”

“I did.”

“That’s so cool! You didn’t tell me you were that cool! I thought you were just boring aside from the science stuff! You’re like the smartest person I’ve ever met!”

Hermann didn’t know what to do with the odd surge of pride that swept through him at the compliment. The boy barely knew what a Jaeger was, let alone the work that went into getting the first up and running. And yet his was some of the highest praise Hermann had received. There hadn’t been much time for congratulations back when the program first started. There still wasn’t. Any glory went to those who piloted the Jaegers, the faces of the program.

“…thank you, Newt.”

“Can we just look for one more second?”

“I suppose it wouldn’t hurt,” he answered, letting Newt take his hand as they made a slow circle around Striker Eureka.

“I wanna Drift one day! And beat up the monsters!”

“I’m sure you will,” Hermann said, guiding him back to the doors of the hangar.

The fact Newt didn’t protest showed him just how tired the boy was. It had only taken a near death experience and a few trips around the base to get him to that point. They ran into Mako in the hallway. She offered Hermann a brief smile and headed in the direction of her room. Reaching Hermann’s quarters, Newt didn’t protest as Hermann led him to the bed. He made Newt get in first, if only so the boy might wake him during his next potential escape attempt. Once they were both settled, Hermann turned off the light.

No noises woke him this time. The honor fell to the elbow digging painfully into his ribs just after ten o’clock. Hermann groaned in protest, shifting to try and escape it. Not that it did him much good. However Newton was laying, he was taking up the majority of the bed. Hermann reluctantly opened his eyes, coming face to face with a bare chest that could not possibly belong to any child.

He jerked upright, eyes wide. Newt shifted where he lay, half dressed due to his pajamas not growing with his body. The only sign anything had happened at all was the pale, milky color of his arms and torso, his tattoos gone. Hermann would have questioned their absence, but he was beyond that point after the events of the past twenty-four hours.

He debated briefly on whether or not to wake Newt. He decided he would likely need tea first. Hermann climbed carefully out of the bed, avoiding the puddle of drool Newt seemed determined to leave, with a disgusted twist of his lips. He’d wake him and inform him of what had transpired when he returned.

And likely spend the hours after trying to keep Newt from determining whether or not the event could be recreated.

Newt hadn’t changed much over the years. Hermann doubted his having grown up a second time would help.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed this! Especially the anon who requested it!
> 
> |: I swear this was only meant to be fluff. I don't know what happened. I never meant to kill anyone.
> 
> If you're a tumblr addict (like me), you can find me at [therudesea.tumblr.com](http://therudesea.tumblr.com/).


End file.
